


unknown memories tangled into a dream

by ncwi



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, based on an rp i did with a friend, minor mention of death/blood but i think its fine, the chop chop shovel support is one of my favorites, there's like nothing for these two!, they're a rarepair of mine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-03
Updated: 2018-04-03
Packaged: 2019-04-18 03:21:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14203935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ncwi/pseuds/ncwi
Summary: Nowi has a bad dream and needs some reassurance from Lon'qu.





	unknown memories tangled into a dream

Why did he hear crying?  
  
Lon’qu was a light sleeper. That, despite years of living in peace now, had not changed from his habits of surviving on his own. It was rare that he woke up late in the night now, however-- unless Nowi were to accidentally smack him in the face in her sleep. She was heavy, fitful sleeper, which caused some initial issues the first few times they attempted to share a bed, but a compromise was eventually created so Nowi wouldn’t wake him every hour. So, why was he awake now?

 

It was the unmistakable sound of crying that woke him up. As quiet as it was, he could still hear it clearly in the silence of the night. He turned on his side to view the girl who should’ve been sleeping soundly beside him.

 

To his surprise, Nowi’s back was turned to him, and even in the dark of the room, he could see her trembling ever so slightly. _She was crying._ Quietly, at that, but the manakete was doing a poor job of stifling her sniffles. Lon’qu knew the noise well, having dealt with her crocodile tears for most of their relationship, but for what reason would Nowi have to shed fake tears in the middle of the night?

 

“Nowi,” Lon’qu murmured gently as to not startle her. She quickly froze and moved in way Lon’qu could only assume was to wipe away her tears. Nowi turned on her side, looking up at Lon’qu with such a meek smile for her own standards, all the optimism so obviously fake it annoyed the myrmidon.

 

But, Nowi feigned innocence regardless. She hoped the darkness of the room could mask the distressed state she was in, because the last thing the manakete wanted was to worry Lon’qu. “Huh,” she mused quietly. Nowi’s oblivious expression was strained as she spoke, and her tired eyes red. “Oh! Sorry, did I wake you?”  
  
For Nowi to think she could hide her emotions this far into their relationship was ridiculous in Lon’qu’s eyes. Despite her uncanny ability to put on a facade of unbridled optimism and happiness, Nowi was surely an awful liar when she was already caught red handed. Furrowing his brow, Lon’qu reached a hand out and gently cupped her cheek. As he expected, it was wet from her tears.

 

“Why are you crying?” He asked with such a faint hint of worry in his voice. Sure, Nowi was one to cry over small, trivial things that really didn’t seem matter to anyone but her own fragile heart. While Lon’qu had learned to easily tell the difference between Nowi’s real tears and the tears that she faked in order to convince him to do something, it was still difficult to figure out what she was crying over when her tears were real. It was the middle of the night, after all, Lon’qu couldn’t understand what there was to cry over.

 

Nowi’s expression cycled through surprise and guilt, her purple eyes stuck in a widened state. Under the blanket, she fidgeted with her hands, obviously trying to figure out what to say. What _could_ she say? The manakete already felt bad for waking Lon’qu up, and for what she believed to be such a dumb reason. Just a few minutes earlier, Nowi woke with a start, her breathing heavy and panicked and she barely registered where she was. It was only when she looked over and saw Lon’qu that the panic settled, and instead she started to cry.

 

The dream she had-- no, the _nightmare_ , felt all too horrifyingly real. Nowi could vividly remember all the gruesome details of it, even if dreams were supposed to be difficult to remember. They were on an unknown battlefield, fighting enemies she couldn’t recognize. Nowi could remember her screams and cries, the pain she felt as she acted as nothing but a sitting duck to her enemies, and the sight of Lon’qu taking one final hit for her. For a moment, when she had first woken up from the nightmare, she thought she could still see blood staining her hands.

 

As much as Nowi would have rathered to swipe this situation under the rug, she felt helpless in the middle of Lon’qu’s gaze. The manakete huffed before shifting in bed, scooting closer to Lon’qu and burying her face against his chest. Her fingers curled tightly around the fabric of his nightshirt, and she remained silent for a few moments, before mumbling, “I had a nightmare.”

 

Lon’qu wrapped an arm around Nowi’s waist without hesitation, raising a brow at how the manakete seemed to be clinging onto him for dear life, as if he’d disappear. While Nowi had given no detail on what happened in her dream, Lon’qu could safely assume it was something to do with him, judging by the way she held onto him now.

 

“It’s alright,” he said simply. “It was only a dream. It wasn’t real.” Those words were completely cliche, Lon’qu understood that, but he really didn’t know what else to say. He wasn’t great with words, not even after all these years of having a wife. Many a time he’d have nightmares of his own, of his past that would never cease to haunt him no matter how much time passed, but those were something he’d deal with on his own, and just barely. He was unsure on how to properly deal with others’.

 

It was a rare occurrence that Nowi did not know what to say, despite being someone who spoke so often. She couldn’t bear the thought of of having an even shorter time with Lon’qu, and it terrified her how real this situation seemed. The manakete had no doubt in her mind that Lon’qu would take a fatal blow for her, and that she’d have no way of stopping him-- she had no way of stopping him in her nightmare. She was on the ground, waiting for a final hit that never came and opened her eyes to the sight of an axe in Lon’qu’s back. Just thinking about it again made her sick, but unlike other dreams that would slowly fade as time passes, the image of the death seemed to cement itself in her mind.

 

“Would you die for me?” Nowi immediately regret those words as soon as she said them out. She already _knew_ the answer to that question, but it was the last thing Nowi wanted to hear from Lon’qu after having a nightmare like that.

 

Lon’qu raised a brow at the manakete’s question, his grip around her waist tightening without even realizing it. That’s... not a question Nowi would ever normally ask. He was aware that Nowi was terrified of the fragility of their relationship, and she tended to push those thoughts deep down in her mind, so whatever her nightmare was about must have shaken her up badly. They’ve had this conversation before, he knew that, and Lon’qu knew this wasn’t going to end any differently as well.

 

He sighed, pulling Nowi closer to him ever so slightly. The manakete curled into his touch, still unmoving from her position against his chest. “Without hesitation.” Lon’qu felt Nowi shift as he said that. It wasn’t the answer she wanted, but it was the only answer the myrmidon could honestly give. If he had his way in a battle, he’d let himself get cut down 100 times over an enemy could even scratch Nowi.

 

“Don’t do that,” Nowi blurted out quickly, her grip tightening on the fabric of Lon’qu’s shirt. She refused to let herself cry anymore, but she trembled instead. How pathetic it was that a powerful dragon like herself would be incapable of protecting the one she loved the most. “I love you too much to let you die for my sake.”

 

The myrmidon remained silent, not knowing what he could say to make things better. Lon’qu simply held onto her, hoping she’d fall back asleep soon. Nowi tried to stay up longer, wanting to hear whatever Lon’qu would say after that, but the steady sound of Lon’qu’s heartbeat lulled her back to sleep.

 

For a moment, once Nowi was fast asleep once more, Lon’qu looked at her fondly.

 

“And I, you.”

**Author's Note:**

> theres like.............. nothing for this pair............ so i gotta be the change i want to see


End file.
